Simon Cowell To Give ‘The X Factor’ An International Touch  Simon Cowell |
Simon Cowell is turning his U.K. TV talent show The X Factor into an international extravaganza - and he's picked larger-than-life Las Vegas as the contest's new home base.
The music mogul realised the potential for a global TV hit after viewers around the world began logging online to watch wannabe singers auditioning for his U.K. reality shows, including Susan Boyle on Britain's Got Talent.
And he believes he can persuade millions of people to tune into a worldwide version of The X Factor, which spawned singer Leona Lewis, by transferring it to Sin City to be broadcast on the web.
He's teaming up with billionaire retail boss Sir Philip Green for the new competition, which will be open to contestants across the planet.
Green explains, "The plan is to take it to Vegas. I'm not going to tell you with who, but the CEO of the venture is coming to see us next week. We'll have a permanent place, likely to be Caesar's Palace. The home of X Factor - live from Las Vegas.
"It'll all be online. You have 20, 30, 40 million people tuning in twice a week. You bring two or three hundred million viewers to a venue - off we go! It's taking The X Factor up a peg. The rest of the world is Part Two."
Cowell plans to air his global The X Factor on a pay-per-view internet station, reports Britain's The Sun.
